I was once involved in a massive transformation program. It cost billions of pounds and impacted every house in the UK. The program had been running for a few years. As things tend to go, there were many problems with the program. It was behind schedule. It was mired in complexity. It was under intense scrutiny. Every day a group of senior managers were required to attend a 7am phone call with the Technology Managing Director. This was followed by a 1230 check-in and a 7pm wash-up from the day. When I say every day, I mean every day, including Christmas and other holidays. As I’m sure you can imagine, this doesn’t sound fun and if you had been on many of the calls, you would know it wasn’t much fun. This work culture impacted every facet of life and took a toll on families. It was part of ‘the way things are done around here’. It was led from the top of the company and it was assumed it was the best way to get things delivered.

It was only after leaving the company and seeing how work was in other places that the absurdity of the culture really became clear. The constant pressure did lead to a delivered program, but it also led to a lot of people choosing to work elsewhere in an environment that offered a more balanced approach to life and work and, dare I say, fun.

Consider

Are there aspects of your daily working life that need to be re-assessed so that work becomes more productive for you?

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I'm the Chief Operating Officer for Emergn and Product Manager for VFQ®. Inbetween my day job running Emergn and working with our clients, I write content and develop courses for Value, Flow, Quality®. I’m passionate about learning, helping people change and own the way they work, and helping them develop their own passions.